This is the time of year when people are often either excited to celebrate the holidays or they are feeling a sense of dread about what might be coming during this sometimes stressful season. But the one thing that we all have in common is that we want to be happy.

As I was thinking about happiness, it came to me that a key to happiness involves circulation. By that I mean that true happiness comes from giving and receiving. The kind of sharing that involves the heart and the willingness to share without any expectations.

That statement has been moving through my mind for the past several weeks as I read comments on social media and hear so many people feeling helpless and disillusioned. It’s clear to me that we are living in a time of extreme opposites. There are people doing extraordinary work to bring peace and consciousness to the planet, while at the same time there are also people committed to war and violence.

The real question for me is “How do I want to respond and live?” I believe that we are either part of the problem or we are part of the solution. I also believe that our words have power and that what we put out in the universe eventually returns to us in some form.

So instead of being upset about the state of the world, I have decided to do something, and I would like you to join me.

As we write this, in the spring of ’08, it seems like we’ve been in the world’s longest-running political campaign—and there’s still half-a-year to go! Seeing all those political ads have inspired us to propose a new set of rules for politicians and their ads. For many years we’ve had the privilege and joy of helping people change their lives and their relationships by learning how to use four communication tools skillfully. We originally discovered the power of those tools thirty years ago, by experimenting in our own relationship with ways to keep the flow of intimacy going strong between us. The tools work, and we’ve been rewarded with more love, harmony and creativity than we ever imagined possible.

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